Quick Hits – Rangers vs Bruins 11/8/17

Jimmy Vesey – After putting up just a single point in the Rangers last seven games, the sophomore winger got himself back in the box score in a big way. Vesey got himself two goals against his hometown team, including the GWG, to lead the Blueshirts to victory. And when you look at both goals, they are very similar in nature.

On the first goal, Vesey got himself to the front of the net, where he found the loose puck and put it past a sprawled Tuukka Rask. For an encore, Vesey did the same exact thing and put home the blocked shot off the stick of Kevin Shattenkirk. If this performance can give Vesey his goal-scoring touch back, it can only bode well for the Blueshirts going forward.

Through 17 games this season, 27 of the Rangers' 56 goals (48.2%) have been registered by players who are 25 years old or younger (Zibanejad – eight; Buchnevich – seven; Vesey – four; Hayes – three; Miller – three; Skjei – two).

Pavel Buchnevich – There was a lot of talk coming into this season about the Russian Ranger. How would he fare in his second NHL season? Who would he be lined with? Could he handle the possibility of being a bottom-six player? All of those questions have been answered, and Buchnevich is coming alive for Alain Vigneault’s squad. After a great shift by the Rangers fourth line, a tired group of Bruins couldn’t clear the puck. Ryan McDonagh found Buchnevich coming off the bench, and Buch dipsy-doodled around Zdeno Chara and beat Rask on the short side. It’s an early goal of the year candidate for the Rangers and got the Rangers the much-coveted first goal. The first goal is so important that six of the Blueshirts’ seven wins have come when the Rangers have gotten the game’s first tally. A good start is a big key to the Rangers success going forward, and Buchnevich made sure of that in this one.

Fourth Line – Speaking of the fourth line, the trio of Michael Grabner, Jesper Fast, and Paul Carey did yeoman’s work against the Bruins in this one. The fourth line was hard on the forecheck all game, making sure to put pressure whenever possible on the Bruins defensemen. These guys aren’t the ones who are going to make the headlines for spectacular plays, but they are essential to any hopes of late-spring hockey.

“There were a lot of things I liked about this game. I liked our start. I liked the fact that the goals we scored, we scored by going to the tough areas. Buchy went to the tough areas, Jimmy’s both goals were right from in tight. PK came up big for us tonight, and this was probably the best Hank has looked as far as in control. There were a lot of good things about tonight.” – Alain Vigneault

Ryan McDonagh – This has been an up and down season for the Rangers captain. It seems like for every quality play he makes, he does something to negate it shortly after. McDonagh was on the ice for five of the six goals scored in the game, and was noticeable on four of the five, for better or for worse. On the Buchnevich goal, McDonagh kept the puck in at the line. On the Bruins first goal, McDonagh made the turnover that allowed Boston to generate the scoring chance. On the Bruins second goal, McDonagh and Nick Holden were both covering Patrice Bergeron in front of the net, but neither player took away the alternate captain’s stick and Boston pulled it to within one. But McDonagh made up for those mistakes by getting the puck out of the zone, and on to the tape of Rick Nash for the empty netter that sealed the win. McDonagh is going to have to become more consistent in his performances for the Rangers to continue their winning ways.

Ryan McDonagh extended his assist/point streak to three games (four assists over the span) and he has recorded seven assists/points over the last seven games.

Special Teams – The Rangers PP only had a single chance in this one, and it was for just 30 seconds. But unlike the PP, the Rangers penalty kill needed to come through, and they did. The PK was a perfect 4/4 against the sixth-ranked power play in the NHL. The special teams as a whole have been a big part of the Rangers winning streak. And when your PK goes from 25th in the NHL on October 30th to tied for tenth on November 9th, the team must be doing something right.

Henrik Lundqvist – King Henrik seems to have reclaimed his seat on the throne. The Swedish netminder was a key part of this Rangers win, stopping 31 of 33 shots from the Bruins, including this beautiful save on Patrice Bergeron from the bottom of the faceoff circle. If Henrik is truly turning the page over and is returning to the form we’ve all come to expect from him, the Rangers are in a great position to succeed.

NEXT GAME: The Rangers will go for their sixth win in a row when they take on the Edmonton Oilers on Saturday. Puck drops at 1:00!